Five Differences Between Tombow Markers: Which One Is Better For You? 2

Hey Tombow Fans! This is Jennie! When Tombow USA released the NEW Tombow ABT PRO Alcohol-Based Markers, one of the most frequently asked questions was: If I have the Tombow Dual Brush Pens, do I need the Tombow ABT PRO Markers? In my opinion, you need them both. They are very different. I’m a Tombow and art products fan, so I am incredibly biased. I’m going to give you five differences to help you decide which Tombow marker is better for you.

Ink Base:

If you are a long time Tombow fan, you know the Tombow Dual Brush Pens. They are water-based which are perfect for watercoloring. The good thing about this kind of ink is that is very versatile. You can add more color and make it darker (once the paper is dry) or you can add water and remove some of the color with a paper towel. It’s releases more ink than the Tombow ABT PRO Markers. Since the ink doesn’t dry as fast there is a possibility of smearing. Just work from left to right if you are right handed and from right to left if you are left handed. The ink is also odorless.

The Tombow ABT PRO Marker has an alcohol-based ink. This ink is permanent. It’s vibrant and saturated! Perfect for artists and beginners. The ink also dries really fast! It’s also buildable. This is great because you can add many layers to get the desired effect.

Marker Tips:

The Tombow Dual Brush Pens have a brush tip and a fine bullet tip. The flexible nylon brush tip is perfect for lettering. Depending on the pressure you apply, it can create thick or thin brushstrokes. The fine tip is great for small details like patterns on lettering. Both tips also self clean.

The Tombow ABT PRO Alcohol-Based Markers have a resilient flexible brush tip and a firm chisel tip. The brush tip is great to create brush strokes like the ones in the hair of this lady illustration. The chisel tip is great to fill big spaces like the background of the lady illustration.

Blending:

The Tombow Dual Brush Pens make blending a dream! You can use a colored Tombow Dual Brush Pen, the Tombow Colorless Blender or the Tombow Water Brush to blend. These markers are great for beginners because you can blend them quickly without effort. You can use one color and move it across the paper with Tombow Colorless Blender or the Tombow Water Brush to get many different gradations. You can also pick up color from the Tombow Blending Palette and add it to the paper. This is called indirect blending. Direct blending is when you put the color directly on the paper and blend it with the Tombow Colorless Blender or the Tombow Water Brush.

The Tombow ABT PRO Alcohol-Based Markers take a bit more time to blend. They blend smoothly. However, you need two colors or more to create shadows. You can keep adding colors to create layers and texture.

Bleed Through and Ghosting:

The Tombow Dual Brush Pens don’t bleed through or ghost in most artist journals and planners.

The Tombow ABT PRO Markers bleed quite a lot. My favorite papers to use are Strathmore’s heavy mixed media paper and Archer & Olive journals. I always use a paper behind the page so it doesn’t bleed onto the next page. It still ghosts. For planners, I would prefer the Tombow Dual Brush Pens.

Storage:

Tombow Dual Brush Pens can be stored horizontally or vertically. The Tombow Marker Case holds 108 Tombow Dual Brush Pens.

Tombow ABT PRO Alcohol-Based Markers should be stored horizontally. Tombow ABT PRO Alcohol-Based Marker 12-Packs come with a reusable/stackable desk tray.

I hope this post helped you decided which Tombow marker is the best one for you!